Friends to burn... lolz or whatever the kids are saying these days. I have to say that Kerouac lost me; I have been known to refer to the Beat poets as 'a veterans movement.' Bukowski overpublished. Which should be the FIFTEENTH deadly sin. But both tend to appeal to young men.

As far as I can tell talent and friends are both problems. He should be in college right now discussing this stuff with his peers and experimenting with mind-expanding experiences. Instead, he works like a dog. Which is part of what moves me about him. His desire is palpable. Who I am to refuse someone who so badly wants to serve the Word? A good reading list is the least I can offer.